Early Morning, Calangute Beach

Early Morning Calangute Beach, 12" x 25", Oil on Canvas 

 

I love looking at the sea and painting it too :). This is based on a photograph I took at Calangute Beach, Goa just before sunrise.

All comments and critiques are most welcome.

Seascape and Watercolour Sketches

Ratnagiri Beach, Oil on Canvas, 18" X 24" 

Did this one from a photograph I took at Ratnagiri on the Pule Beach. Awesome place to visit. The sea is always so amazing to look at and paint :) The photo of the painting though is not so good, with too much glare especially on the top left corner.

I also did a couple of watercolour studies recently. Doing watercolours after a gap of a few months, it felt like beginning from scratch :)

All critiques and comments are most welcome.

Andaman Afternoon, Watercolour on Paper, 16" X 12"

Early Morning Sun, Watercolour on Paper, 12" X 16" 

Still life with Oranges, Plums and Garlics

Still life with Oranges, Plums and Garlic, Oil on Canvas, 18" X 24" 

This canvas is slightly larger than those that I can handle comfortably. Henceforth I am planning to paint larger regularly so I dont have to feel intimidated by the occassional commissions I receive :).
I am not exactly happy with the blank forground. NExt time I will try to create a more balanced composition.
Thank you so much for visiting. Comments and critiques please .....

Sunny Morning Soliloquy

Sunny Morning Soliloquy, Oil on Canvas, 20" X 16" 

Its been some time since I posted anything new here. That is because I was busy completing the colour charts as described in Richard Schmid's book Alla Prima II. Each chart just seemed to take forever especially since I did all of them with a pallette knife. It was certainly an exhausting exercise but I feel more confident with colour now. Of course I will have to keep studying them periodically to grasp all the info they offer. I will be posting them in the near future. I noted that some colours result in really surprising mixtures, for e.g. Alizarin Crimson + Viridian give a beautiful purply-violet, Viridian, alizarin and Indian red are very strong colours and they dominate every mixture much more than the other colours even when added in traces, yellow ochre tends to darken every mixture it is added to etc. I am sure there is a lot more to discover. :)

The above painting "Sunny Morning Soliloquy" was done from a photograph I took very near to the place I live. The background was quite busy and I tried to quite it down to make sure it doesnt distract attention from the centre of interest. All comments are most welcome.

Navin

Navin, Oil on Canvas, 18" X 12.5"

This is a portrait of my friend Navin done from life yesterday afternoon. It was a wonderful experience and I am sure I have learnt a lot of things from thi unconsciously. I was really hoping that I would capture the likeness to the best of my ability so that he is not disappointed. In the end he was quite happy .... although I can certify that he is much better looking than this ;)
Thanks Navin and thanks everyone for stopping by. Comments and critiques please :)

Self Portrait using a mirror

Self Portrait, Oil on Paper, 15" X 11"

Lately I have been trying to take every opportunity of painting from life, especially landscapes (I have always painted still lives from life). But when speaking of portraiture, you need someone else who is equally enthusiastic as you are (which, in my limited experience, is quite difficult). So I am planning to do a few more of these self portraits using a mirror in different lighting situations and orientations. That way I hope to ensure I will be in good nick when someone finally agrees to pose and wont disappoint them :). The likeness here is quite close, but not perfect.
Thank you for stopping by. All comments and critiques are welcome :)  

The Rag Picker

The Rag Picker, Oil on Canvas, 16" X 12"

In this portrait study I wanted to concentrate on the scarf and folds of clothing in general. I wish I had made a background a little more interesting.
Thank you all for stopping by. All comments and critiques are most welcome.

Sketch of a girl - a master copy

Sketch of a Girl (after W Bouguereau), Oil on Canvas, 14" X 12" 

To say that I am a huge admirer of William Adolphe Bouguereau would be such an understatement. I enjoyed doing this alla prima master copy and also it was a wonderful learning experience. I will be doing a few more these copies and hopefully achieve a better likeness :)
Thank you so much for stopping by. All comments and critiques are most welcome.

Still Life with Onion, Garlic and Grapes

Still Life with Onion, Garlic and Grapes, Oil on Canvas, 14" X 18"

I have painted this still life after a long time. I think it is a very good subject when trying to fine tune basics of values, edges etc. One doesn't have to hire a model and yet one can reap all the benefits of painting from life. Besides there is no need to feel embarrassed if the painting gets screwed up :) Perhaps thats why Still Life is one of my favourite genres.

Thanks for stopping by. Please do leave your valuable comments and critiques.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Tikkar Billa, Oil on Canvas, 24" X 20" 

A very happy new year to all my friends and fellow bloggers. Thank you for all the encouragement you guys have provided me with in the past year. I look forward to it in the coming year too. 
I composed this painting using several sources, mostly photos and a couple of face and hand sketches. I have changed the colours of the dress hoping to create a more pleasing harmony.
Thank you so much for stopping by. All comments and critiques are most welcome.

Evening

Evening, Oil on Canvas, 18" X 14"

Reference Photo Courtesy: Olga Burczyk (www.facebook.com/ksantypa.photography)
I did this one from a reference pic by Olga Burczyk who was really kind in letting me use her work. I have altered the background and colours to suit my theme.
All comments and critiques are most welcome. :)

Ameya

Ameya, Oil on Paper, 15" X 11"

This is my first serious sketch of my son, Ameya. I have done a few in pencil before but I think here I have captured the likeness almost perfectly. I now feel I should have softened the line of the hair on his right temple.
All comments and critiques are most welcome.

The Year That Was... 2013

I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and have begun the new year in high spirits and great aspirations. 
2013 was a particularly happy and fulfilling year for me as an artist and art student, even though I sold only two paintings :). My paintings were selected in three juried shows, out of which two were my first time selections. :). I also won my first award ever at professional level in this year :)

Hyderabad Art Society Annual National Exhibition:

Tribal Boy, Charcoal on Paper, (11.7" X 16.5")

This drawing, Tribal Boy received Highly Commendable certificate at the Hyderabad Art Society's Annual National Exhibition 2013.

 SCZCC Nagpur Annual National Exhibition:

Woman from Ladakh, Charcoal on Paper, (15" X 11.5")

My first time selection at South Central Zone Cultural Centre's National Exhibition 2013.

Camlin South Zone Exhibition:

"Evening Light", Oil on Primed Paper, (22" X 15")

This painting and the next were my first time selections for the Camlin South Zone Annual Exhibition.

Evening's Glow, Watercolour on Paper, (20" X 14")

This painting won best entry award at the regional level. My first ever award at the professional level! :)

Thank you so much for reading this far. I thank all my readers and friends for their support and encouragement throughout the last year. I hope I will receive the same in the coming days too. :)

I pray everyone of us has a wonderfully fulfilling new year as artists and as human beings.

Best wishes .....

Old Man

"Old Man", Oil on Canvas, (18" X 14") 

I am posting on my blog after a long time. Have been doing lots of drawings lately, but nothing really good enough to be put up here. As always, comments and critiques are most welcome.
Thank you so much for stopping by.

Lemons and Garlics

"Lemons and Garlics", Oil on Canvas, (14" X 18") 

I did this painting on Sunday. Took me about 7 hours. I find it very difficult to get ellipses right. So the mouth of the pickle pot was quite a challenge. :)

Thank you so much for visiting. Comments and critiques are most welcome.

Old Timpiece

Old Timepiece, Oil on Oil Paper,  (13" X 11")

This old mechanical timepiece was used by my dad during his college days. While going through some old things in our home in Nagpur, I found this lovely timepiece along with its classy wooden case. I wound the spring and it started working just fine. I wish the dial was white with roman numerals, but this I think is beautiful too. 

This shall be my entry for DPW's weekly challenge "Make it move". 

Thank you for visiting my blog. All comments and critiques are most welcome.

Phoenix Rising!

Phoenix Rising, Oil on Canvas, (24" x 30")

A few months ago I was contacted by someone for a painting of a phoenix. My initial reaction was "NO", I dont paint such fantastic stuff. Then I felt that since I am a "struggling artist" I should not be turning down prospective clients. Besides, I might just learn something new that will help me with the kind of painting that I normally do. So I finally did give it a shot.

Now, I have never painted birds in my life or even studied their anatomy. So I researched the internet for pictures of the phoenix. (in fact I didnt even know the story!). The basic idea was taken from a graphic I found here. Thanks :) I tried to model the head on that of the bald eagle with a longer beak. I had to make several sketches (atleast 15) before I could zero in upon what I wanted to paint!

This was quite an exercise for me. I have never used cad red, yellow, orange, vermilion etc is much in a painting. It felt kinda wierd to finish an entire painting without dipping in any of the blues.

All comments and critiques are most welcome. Thanks for stopping by. :)